Showing posts with label harbour improvements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label harbour improvements. Show all posts

Symi Spring Pastels

Pachos kafeneion near our office is closed for a few days for its annual spring-clean and repaint.  It is quite common here to see business owners doing their own painting and decorating.  

The two boutiques on the other side of us are now open.

You must admit, Symi harbour is exceptionally photogenic.

The herb and spice shop by the bridge has opened for the summer.

The mulberry trees that were planted in the town square a few years ago have suddenly turned into proper trees and should provide good shade.

One of Symi's several sponge shops.  That is the National Bank of Greece next door. They have an ATM just inside the doorway. There is another ATM further down, in the vestibule of the Alpha Bank and then there is a third on the opposite side, next to the pharmacy.

The view from the Symi Visitor Accommodation balcony today.  

Pretty spring pastels are always in fashion on Symi.

There is an amazing array  of fresh produce available at the moment as there is an overlap between the cool weather vegetables like leeks and cauliflowers, the strictly spring time artichokes and then the first of the summer cucumbers, tomatoes and aubergines. No, the pineapples on the right are not local - they, like the bananas, come from South America.  Greek produces a wide range of fresh produce through the year but tropical fruits are not on the list.

A quiet lane in Yialos.
It is still fairly cool with a light north-westerly breeze and we had several hours of steady drizzle on Saturday night.  Temperatures are forecast to rise steadily through the week, peaking at 26 degrees on Saturday, just in time for the May Day long weekend.  There is no further rain on the horizon and unless we have a shower in May, the summer drought has begun.  Symi has one of the longest dry seasons in Greece and can go without any rain at all from April through to early November.

Work has resumed across the bay, on the new commercial harbour and jetty, and I can hear a steady distant 'tok-tok-tok' as they chip away at the rocky shoreline.  They are still creating a large flat area at the base of the hill and widening the frontage as far as Petalo.  Once this becomes operational there will be far less heavy vehicle traffic through Yialos as the car ferries will dock and unload there instead of at the clock tower.  Symi may also then provide shelter to occasional cruise ships late in the season when strong winds and heavy swells close Rhodes harbour.

Sorry but that's it for poppy pictures for another year!

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

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A Walk in the Winter Sun


Wild cyclamens growing from a gate on the Kali Strata.  

Somehow the fat purple tubers find enough space between the dressed stones to survive from one year to the next, inaccessible unless the masonry is actually taken apart, and provide a charming floral interlude each winter.


Sunshine and shade in a lane off the Kali Strata. 

That is the little monastery on Nimos visible across the water in the background.  The puddle on the paving is the only clue to the recent heavy rain, that and the small clump of weeds at the base of the wall.  It is not unusual to find sheep browsing on the wild flowers on the Kali Strata at this time of the year.  Free grazing is always welcome.


Arbour Day?

Much to the amazement of many, Symi Town Hall has embarked upon a tree planting campaign in the town square in Yialos.  It is a strange location to be planting a new forest but no doubt the story behind it will be revealed eventually.  The first hurdle will be how well the saplings survive the annual carnival festivities that will be taking place in the square this weekend.  The children present their tableaux on the stage currently half-hidden by the diggers and plastic chairs are laid out in rows on the area now being planted.


A place in the sun.

At this time of the year many houses, such as Villa Iris and Spiti Grand Helene, are still closed up for the winter but those that are occupied are easily identified by the rugs and blankets airing over the balconies on sunny days.


Some Chorio cats soaking up the winter sunshine. 

This is the lane that leads from the Cottage to the shops and tavernas in the village.  In a few weeks that green patch will be a mass of yellow daisies and by the time the July tourists are here the same path will be baked bare.  Only the cats remain constant.  Symi's face changes with the seasons and there is always something new to look at, even as one walks the same paths and byways.  

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

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Lupins and Lavender


Lupins and Lavender


The equinox passed with a flurry of thunder showers and spring has arrived on Symi on a wave of daisies.  As temperatures have shot up in recent days so has the vegetation with lush abandon.  The sheep nibble all night by the light of the full moon, bells tinkling gently as they move across the ancient terraces.  Symi is waking up for the tourist season which starts with Easter in April.  Now that the rainy season has, to all intents and purposes, come to an end, the great drying out process has begun. Outdoor jobs are a pleasure in the spring sunshine and even the workmen laying the paving outside the Symi Visitor Accommodation office have shed a few layers of clothing.  It is still quite chilly indoors though as it takes a long time for the warmth to penetrate the thick stone walls.


Men at work

There is a bit of a panic on with the boats at the moment as ANES has officially filed for bankruptcy. More details of this on our companion blog. However Wendy spoke to Ilias Haskas, the deputy mayor, this morning, and he told her that the Proteus will be running on Wednesday this week and that we will be seeing the Symi II again this summer. This is welcome news because at the moment there is virtually nothing in the shops and with the lack of car ferries it is impossible to have things sent over. On Symi even at the best of times choices are limited to what is available but with so many people needing paint, wood and other supplies to get their houses and businesses ready for the season, the prospect of being forced to paint ones shutters in whatever colour has proved to be the least popular in the last decade and therefore the only paint available is sad.

Have a good week.

Regards,

Adriana



A splash of brightness at Dino the Chandler. 
Apart from the wheelbarrow he also sells agricultural implements and brass door knockers.

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About this Blog

I sailed into Panormitis Bay, Symi, by chance one windy July day in 1993 and have been here ever since. The locals tell me that this is one of the miracles of St Michael of Panormitis. A BA graduate with majors in English, Philosophy and Classical Civilisation, the idea of living in what is to all intents and purposes an archaeological site appeals to me. Not as small as Kastellorizo, not as touristy as Rhodes, Symi is just the right size. I live on a small holding which my husband and I have reclaimed from a ruin of over-grazing and neglect and turned into a small oasis over the course of the past 22 years. I also work part-time for Symi Visitor Accommodation, helping independent travellers discover and enjoy Symi's simple pleasures for themselves.

This page is kindly sponsored by Wendy Wilcox, Symi Visitor Accommodation.


Adriana Shum

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